Automatically-operable valve.



' c. E. HASTY.

AUTOMATICALLY OPERABLE VALVE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 20, 1909.

Dec. 5, 1911.

A Pai'gn ted UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES EDWARD I-IASTY, OF ELGIN, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 HAS'IYMANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF ELGIN, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

AUTOMATICALLY-OPERABLE VALVE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Original application filed July 22, 1909, Serial No. 508,887. Dividedand this application iiled December 20,

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES EDWARD IIASTY, acitizen of the United States of America, residing at Elgin, in thecounty of Kane and State of Illinois, have invented a new and usefulAutomatically-Operable Valve, of which the following is a specification,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, illustrating same.

This present application is a division of my co-pending United Statesapplication Serial No. 508,887, filed July 22, 1909.

My invention relates to valves and also to means for automaticallyoperating such 'alves under certain conditions.

The principal objects of my invention are, to provide improved means forcausing the automatic operation of a valve under certain conditions; toprovide improved means for causing the operation of a valve from adistance, by electrical mechanism; to provide improved means forautomatically locking the valve in closed position when it is closed;and to provide improvedconstructions in valves andautomatically-operating mechanism therefor as will be hereinafter morefully described.

Other objects will be apparent from the following specification.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a side view of the preferredform of the improved valve of this invention, with portions shown incross-section to show the interior construction thereof; Fig. 2 is aside elevation of the lower portion of the valve casing, taken the sameas Fig. 1, showing the annular recesses in the casing and one of thepassageways connecting the said recesses; Fig. 3 is a side elevation ofthe lower portion of the valve casing and plug stem, taken at rightangles to Fig. 1, showing the annular recesses in the casing around thestem of the plug and also the small depressions for holding thevalve-operating mechanism in the position in which the valve is fullyopened; and Fig. 1 is an edge elevation of a portion of the operatingmechanism of Fig. 1. 7

Like characters refer to like parts in the several figures.

In certain places and at certain times it is very desirable to be ableto cause the operation of a valve, in gas or water systems, at somedistance from the valve, and also to Serial No. 534,129.

know that the valve has been suitably operated by automatic mechanismwhen it is impossible to reach the valve to operate it by hand. Forinstance, in the case of a burning building it is very desirable to shutoff the supply of gas to the building, in the main pipe preferably atthe meter, to avoid explosions and the possibility of increasing thefire. Oftentimes it is impossible for a person to reach the valve in themain pipe to close it, as when the building or basement of the buildingis full of fire or smoke, and in this case it is very desirable to havemeans for automatically closingthe valve when the fire producesconsiderable heat therearound, or means associated with the valve whichcan be operated at a-distance to automatically close the valveasdesired. To these ends the valve-operating mechanism of this inventionis provided. In such automatically-operable valves it is also verydesirable to have means for automatically locking the valve in closedposition when it again opened untilunlocked. This feature isaccomplished by the mechanism hereinafter described.

In the valveoperating mechanism shown, the valve is automatically closedbythe fusing of a joint, upon abnormal heating,

which allows spring mechanism to auto-.

matically operate the apparatus and thus close the valve. Thevalve-operating mechis provided with an inlet): leading to the taperedplug seat, and an outlet 5 leading from the opening for the stem 3. Theupper end of the plug 2 is provided with a longitudinal hole 6 extendingpart way down the plug and meeting a transverse hole. 7 through theplug, preferably as shown. When the tapered portion of the plug'2 israised from' its seat, againstthe action of coil springs 8 and 9, theinlet 4 is connected with the hole 6, and then by properly turning theplug 2the outlet 5 is connected with Patented Dec. 5, 1911.

,is automatically closed, so that it cannot be the transverse hole 7which is now raised into alinement with the outlet 5. Thus it will beseen that when the plug 2 is raised from its seat and properly turned,the passage through the valve is opened, and that when the plug islowered into its seat the passage through the valve is closed.

The lower end of the plug 2 is provided with a longitudinal hole 6therein within which is placed a plunger a and a coil spring I) actingthereon. The plug 2 also carries a pair of pins 0 0 therein, looselyplaced within a transverse hole in the plug 2. The outer ends of thepins 0 0 project out past the plug stem 3 into an annular groove withinthe casing 1, as shown in Fig. 1, when the plug 2 is seated in its seat,so as to lock the plug 2 down until it is deslred to release same. Whenit is desired to raise the plug 2 out of its seat to open the valve, itis necessary to raise the plunger a against the action of the coilspring I), by thrusting an instrument into the hole 6 against theplunger a. When the plunger a is thus raised, the pins 0 c are free tomove inwardly, and, therefore, the plug 2 is free to be raised from itsseat. Now when the plug 2 is raised from its seat while the plunger a isheld up, the pins 0 0 are pressed inwardly by their contact with thecasing 1, until they lie entirely within the plug stem 3, the plug 2being now free to be raised from its seat as desired. Now when the plug2 is again seated in its seat, the pins 0 0 are lowered with the plug 2until they are forced out by the plunger a into the annular recess inthe casing 1, as shown in Fig. 1, thus again locking the valve in closedposition. It will be readily understood that when the valve is eitheropen or closed, the plug 2 may be turned around as desired, the pins 0 0in no way limiting such movement.

The lower end of the plug stem 3 carries a cross bar 11, preferably madeof two formed metal portions, which extends through a slot 10 in thelower end of the plug stem 3. A nut 12 securely holds the bar 11 inplace, by being screwed up tightly against the bar 11 and also squeezingthe bifurcated end portions of the plug stem 3 together against the bar11. The bar 11 is provided with a hole 11 therethrough through which theinstrument for raising the plunger a may be inserted as desired.

The cross bar 11 is provided-with a pair of upturned arms 11 11 at eachend thereof, between which arms are loosely pivoted a pair of operatingarms 13 13 at 14 14. The arms 13 13 are connected together at theirlower ends by a fusible link 27 28 which is loosely pivoted tothe arms13 13 at 15 15. The upper ends of the arms 13 13 extend inwardly as at16 16, and are beveled as at 17 17, to cooperate with the annularpassageways 18 and 19 and the beveled annular pro jection 20 of thecasing 1. The annular projection 20 is preferably provided with a pairof diametrically opposite passageways 21 connecting the annular groove18 and the cylindrical portion 19, and also with a pair of diametricallyopposite depressions 23 on the upper beveled surface thereof, locatedmidway between the passageways 21. The ends 16 16 of the arms 13 13 areadapted to slide through the passageways 21 when the arms 1313 and crossbar 11 are turned around to the proper position and then all raised as aunit with the plug 2 against the action of springs 8 and 9, to theheight shown in dotted lines 22 22.

It will be readily seen that the arms 13 13 may be turned clear aroundin either their lower position or their upper position 22 22, in thelatter position the mechanism if so turned opening and closing theoutlet passage 5 during a revolution. It will also be seen that when thehole 7 is in alinement with the passage 5 so that the valve is fullyopen, the ends l6 16 of the arms 13 13 will drop down slightly into thedepressions 23 so as to prevent the valve plug 2 from being turned untilthe operating mechanism is slightly raised. This serves as a latch tohold the valve open against any accidental turning of the operatingmechanism.

It will be readily seen that when the arms 13 13 are turned so that theends 16 16 thereof are directly above the passageways 21 21, in theupper position, the springs 8 and 9 will automatically act to throw thearms 13 13 and the plug 2 to the lower position, thus seating the plug 2and tightly closing the inlet passage 4. Now if the operating mechanismis turned around in this lower position, the valve will not be opened inthe least, because the inlet passage 4 is always tightly closed by thetapered portion of the plug 2. Thus it will be seen that thisarrangement provides a safety valve which is also capable of manualoperation as desired.

The purpose of the upturned arms 11 11 is to protect the upper portionsof the operating arms 13 13 from injury from falling objects, in thecase of burning buildings, so as to preserve the usefulness of thevalve.

.If, however, such falling objects strike the lower ends of the arms 1313 they may in some cases cause the operation of the valve, .by breakingthe fusible link, even before .the fire has heated the said link.

Within the lower end of the portion 19 of the casing 1 is placed apacking ring 24 and suitable packing 25, the ring 24 being held againstthe packing by spring 9. The spring 9 is preferably inclosed by acupshaped portion 26 which is adapted to slide over the portion 19 whenthe arms 13 13 are raised.

The fusible link shown in Fig. 1, comprises a hollow metallic spool 27and a metallic pin 28 soldered therein by easilyfusible solder andoperable endwise through the spool 27. The portion 27 has a heating coil32 wound thereon for producing heat by means of an electric current tofuse or soften the easily-fusible solder. One terminal of the winding 32is connected to a terminal member 34 which is suitably insulated fromits arm 13 and from the remainder of the valve-operating mechanism, theother terminal of the winding 32 being preferably connected to the valvemechanism. Of course it is to be understood that Various forms ofheating elements may be used in the apparatus of this invention.

If the fusible link 27 28 is abnormally heated while the valve is open,either by fire or by an electric current, the easily-fusible solder isthus softened or melted, whereupon the spring members 8 and 9 acting onthe plug 2 and the valve-operating mechanism, automatically force theupper portions 16 16 of the arms 13 13 apart, due to the beveledsurfaces of the depressions 23, and thereby force the valve-operatingmechanism and the plug 2 as a whole, to the lower position shown in Fig.1, the lower ends of the arms 13 13 being forced together. Thus it willbe seen that the fusing or weakening of the fusible link 27 28 causesthe valve to be automatically closed. If it is desired to reset theapparatus so that the valve can be again held in opened position, it isonly necessary to heat the link 27 28 in any suit-able manner,

. such as with a soldering copper or an elec trio current in the coil32, and place the parts of the link in normal position, whereupon thecooling of the solder restores the fusible link and the arms 13 13 tonormal position and condition.

Of course the device of this invention may be readily made to resolderitself in operative condition, or in other words self-soldering, bysimply equipping same with spring mechanism, such as a coil spring 28surrounding the portion 28, adapted to automatically throw the upperends 16 16 of the arms 13 13 together after they have been spread apartand automatically operated to their lower position by the fusing of thefusible link, before the fusible link cools after operation.

I do not wish to limit this invention to all of the exact details hereinset forth, as various modifications of same may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A valve of the character described having a plug adapted to be placedin a plurality of positions and to be turned in each of the saidpositions, to control the passage through the valve, means for holdingthe said plug in each of the said positions, means for automaticallythrowing the said plug from one of the said positions to another toclose the valve, and mechanism adapted to automatically look the saidplug in the position in which the valve is closed whereby the valvecannot be opened until it is unlocked.

2. A valve of the character set forth having a plug and a seat therefor,means for raising the plug from its seat to open the valve, means forholding the plug in open position, means for seating the plug asdesired, and mechanism within the plug adapted to automatically lock theplug in its seat when seated, whereby the valve cannot be opened untilit is unlocked.

3. A valve of the character set forth having a plug and a seat therefor,means for raising the plug from its seat to open the valve, andmechanism within the plug adapted to automatically lock the plug initsseat when seated, whereby the valve cannot be opened until it isunlocked.

4. A valve of the character set forth having a plug, means for givingthe plug a longitudinal movement to control the valve passage, andmechanism within the plug adapted to automatically lock the plug inclosed position whereby the valve cannot be opened until it is unlocked.

5. In a valve having a plug, a longitudinally-arranged plunger withinthe plug,

spring mechanism acting on the said plunger, transverse members carriedwithin the plug, adapted to project therefrom on opposite sides thereofand cooperating with the said plunger, and means exterior of the plugcooperating with the said transverse members, whereby the plug may beautomatically locked against operation.

6. In a valve having a plug, a longitudinally-arranged spring-controlledplunger within the plug, transverse locking members within the plugcooperating with the said plunger, and means cooperating with the saidlocking members, whereby the plug may be locked against operation.

7. A valve having valve-operating mechanism, means for automaticallythrowing the said mechanism to closing position when the valve is beingclosed, and mechanism adapted to automatically lock the said valve inclosed position whereby it cannot be opened until it is unlocked.

8. In a valve having a plug, a spring-controlled plunger within theplug, a locking member within the plug cooperating with the saidplunger, and means cooperating with the said locking member, whereby theplug may be locked against longitudinal movement.

9. A valve of the character set forth having a plug and a seat therefor,means for raising the plug from its seat to open the valve, aspring-controlled plunger within the plug, locking members within theplug cooperating with the said plunger, and means cooperating with thesaid locking members, whereby the plug may be locked against operation.

10. A valve of the character set forth having a plug, means for givingthe plug a longitudinal movement to control the valve passage, aspring-controlled plunger within the plug, a locking member within theplug cooperating with the said plunger, an 1 means cooperating with thesaid locking member, whereby the plug may be locked against operation.

11. A valve having a plug and operating mechanism therefor, means forautomatically throwing the said plug and mechanism to closing position,and mechanism carried within the plug and adapted to automatically lockthe valve inclosed position whereby it cannot be opened until it isunlocked.

12. In a valve having a plug adapted to be moved longitudinally and alsorotated to control the valve passage, means for locking the plug againstrotation when the valve is open, and means for locking the plug againstlongitudinal movement when the valve is closed.

13. In a valve having a plug, a longitudinally-arrangedspring-controlled plunger within the plug, a transverse locking memberwithin the plug cooperating with the said plunger, and means cooperatingwith the said locking member, whereby the plug may be locked againstoperation.

1a. A valve of the character set forth having a plug and a seattherefor, means for raising the plug from its seat to open the valve, aspring-controlled plunger with.- in the plug, a locking member withinthe plug cooperating with the said plunger, and means cooperating withthe said locking member, whereby the plug may be locked againstoperation.

15. A valve of the character set forth having a plug, means for givingthe plug a longitudinal movement to control the valve passage, aspring-controlled plunger within the plug, locking members within theplug cooperating with the said plunger, and means cooperating with thesaid locking members, whereby the plug may be locked against operation.

16. A valve having a plug and valveoperating mechanism adapted to bemoved longitudinally and also rotated to control the valve passage,means for locking the said plug and mechanism against rotation when thevalve is open, and means for looking the said plug and mechanism againstlongitudinal movement when the valve is closed.

As inventor of the foregoing I hereunto subscribe my name, this 7th dayof December, 1909.

CHARLES EnWARD HASTY.

Witnesses:

H. L. GIVEN, Var. nsToN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

